Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) provides a standard way for applications to request and manage directory information. A simplified subset of the much more elaborate X.500 Directory Access Protocol, LDAP is more appropriate for many of today's applications, on both the client and server sides, because it makes fewer demands on system resources and supports TCP/IP. (It uses TCP, not UDP).
LDAP implementations use a client/server architecture to publish user information (such as user accounts) on the server and provide access to that directory information from LDAP-enabled clients.
WS_FTP Server offers two ways to connect to a Microsoft Active Directory for authentication. You can use the LDAP feature, or the Active Directory plug-in, which also lets you use Windows file permissions. Either method can be selected when you create a host.
WS_FTP Server supports standard implementations of LDAP, including Microsoft's Active Directory, OpenLDAP, and Novell's eDirectory. WS_FTP Server provides the following capabilities for interacting with an LDAP database:
For more information, see Configuring an LDAP Database.